MSD mounting location

[kennyhbh]

Were is best location to mount the ING. box.? is it ture the engine compartment heat effect these units?

[mybluecobra]

Mine is mounted under the dashboard on the right side. Have not had any problems to date with the MSD unit. I would think the less heat on the unit the better.

[VintageUpgrades]

x2 on mounting it under the pass dash. The newer ones (Digital 6, 6AL-2, etc.) don't seem to be as prone to heat failure.
If it is a 6A or 6AL, just don't use it.

[legenmetals]

I mounted mine under the passenger seat of my 1965 Mustang. I boxed in the raised portion of the floor pan with an opening at the rear for access to the chip. The carpet has velcro and just pulls back. No problems so far. It seems that every Hot Rod has a red box under the hood. I also painted my red distibutor cap black without any problems. I like the old school look.

[venum14]

6AL under the pass side of dash, no problems so far going on 19 yrs. Changed the rev limiter chip last year because it starting cutting out about 1,500 rpm too soon. Installed new chip back to 6,700 redline.

Jeff

[*13*]

Under center of dash on interior side of firewall.

[mln385]

Under dash passenger side, be sure to use the rubber vibration isolators too.

[Clois Harlan]

inside cockpit facing passenger at the top of the passenger foot box. nice place to use the white wire for a kill switch too.

[RallySnake]

For years I had the 6AL box mounted vertically on the left side of the foot box so it would double as a foot rest. I mounted the old 6A box behind it and rigged it up NASCAR style so I could switch from one to the other if one failed. I got a little carried away and modified an MSD distributor to hold two ignition modules so I could have ultimate reliability for long distance events. This worked ok but didn't run very smooth. I think that the two modules interfered with each other. The spark gap in the distributor cap and the NASCAR coil splitter also created a lot of electro magnetic interference that bothered my rally computers.

I recently found that I could buy a Megajolt distributorless ignition system with a Motorcraft EDIS8 controller and coil packs for under $500. The EDIS system was used on Fords through most of the '90's and the stuff is really cheap now. It is also much more reliable than any aftermarket stuff. I attached a crank trigger wheel to my crank pulley and made a bracket to hold the crank trigger. I had to convert my MSD spark plug wires to clip onto the coil packs. I also had to make a simple wire harness to connect the electronic modules together. You can leave the distributor in place to drive the oil pump or cut it off. I found a oil pump drive that fit under the intake manifold. I used the old distributor hole for a PCV valve.

The neatest idea I had was to use an old leaky 427 surge tank to make a cover for the coil packs. I cut the bottom out of it and cleaned it up and painted it. I mounted the coil packs on the front of the engine upside down and ran the black spark plug wires around the sides of the engine. A cable tie holds the tank on and a chrome radiator cap tops it off.

The little Megajolt box goes in the foot box where it's dry and cool. You plug your laptop into it and choose all your timing parameters. Or, just download an ignition map from the website like I did. With the new system, the coil packs have much more time to build up a charge for each ignition and the timing is much more accurate. The engine runs much smoother and has more power throughout the rpm range.

If anyone needs a couple of MSD boxes, let me know.

RS

[lovehamr]

X5 for under the dash on the passenger side. Mine is a BDR and I used the mounts for the (missing) right hand steering column. I made a plate with my 6AL Programmable W/ isolators that bolts to the two mount holes in the dash support beam. Since SPFs are sold in countries with RH drive I imagine that there is some provision there on your car as well. Makes install and maintenance easy.

[jwoodard]

Here's a link to a photo of a typical under dash mounting for the MSD6,or MSD6AL in a SPF.
MSD In A SPF Photo by cobraman_photos | Photobucket
When I mounted mine, I mounted it right side up by using some delrin spacers from Home Depot and longer screws. I heard somewhere there was a potential for moisture to get into the box when mounted upside down. Don't actually know if it's true or not. Sorry, no picture of my install and just sold the car.

[Dirty Harry]

YIKES!
I've had my MSD box on top of the passenger side footbox, inside the engine compartment, for 21 years now. So far, no problems. Now you've got me worried.

[VintageUpgrades]

Originally Posted by Dirty Harry

YIKES!
I've had my MSD box on top of the passenger side footbox, inside the engine compartment, for 21 years now. So far, no problems. Now you've got me worried.

No worries. I never had any problems with the 6A series until around 2008.

[kennyhbh]

Dear Kenneth

The MSD 6 PN6420 can be mounted in the engine compartment. The only thing you want to keep the unit from is moisture.

Bass Chavez
Customer / Electronics Service Technician
Phone: 915-855-7123 Ext: 2279
Fax: 915-856-2706
E-mail:btc@msdperformance.com
Web:MSD Ignition
 Please

[fordracing65]

When mounting the ignition under the dash, did you use the rubber mounts or did you just bolt it on without them. They help for vibration how important are the rubber mounts when installing??